Austrian officials to boycott Euro 2012 in Ukraine

By
Euronews

Austrian government officials will not attend the European soccer championship in Ukraine in June as a “political signal”, Chancellor Werner Faymann said on Wednesday.

“We are concerned about the situation in Ukraine and especially about the detention conditions for former Premier
Yulia Tymoshenko,” he said in a statement.

“Thus we support the position of Germany, which advocates a political boycott of Euro 2012.”

Officials also played down as unrealistic suggestions that Austria, which co-hosted the last Euros with Switzerland in 2008 but whose team has not qualified this time, could host matches
originally scheduled to be played in Ukraine.